Tales of Ursalia
by cakelesspixels
Summary: Tales of Ursalia is an anthology series that takes place after the events of The Witches of New Gumbrea. Warning, there are OCs in this.
1. A Gummi to Remember

The thunder roared. The sound of raindrops hitting the tile roof could be heard as the storm engulfed Ursalia. The wind howled as dark clouds gathered above the city. The Glen Gummis had been cooped up for the majority of the day with the cubs growing restless. In an effort to get them to do something productive, Gruffi handed them boxes of things salvaged from the Glen that still needed to be unpacked. They did as they were told with minimal fighting until something gave Cubbi pause. In one of the containers was a portrait that didn't look nearly as old as the others. The bear featured in the portrait's clothing was far more modern and closer to something that Cubbi might see around town.

He was a dapper looking bear with his hair combed back which was the same color as his russet fur. Cubbi couldn't place his face but neither could Sunni. The two sought out one of the older bears to ask about the never before seen painting. The first person they stumbled across was Grammi. She stood in front of the sink washing several dishes from lunch time. She was never one to let food get caked on.

"Grammi?" Cubbi called out.

"Yes, Cubbi, dear?"

"Grammi, can we ask you something?" Sunni asked.

"Of course you can," she smiled. "What is it?"

"We were unpacking some of the stuff we brought over from the Glen and we found this," Sunni explained as Cubbi held up the portrait.

"We wanted to know if you could tell us who he is," Cubbi added. "We don't remember ever seeing it before."

Grammi stared a moment before gently taking it from the cub's hands. "…You don't remember him?"

Cubbi shook his head. "Should we?"

Grammi sighed. "I guess both of you were a little too young." Sunni could swear she saw tears starting to form.

"Are you alright, Grammi?"

"I'm fine, sugar," she said. "If you two are willing to take a little break from unpacking, I can tell you all about that painting."

Naturally, the two cubs agreed to this almost immediately. After getting them a cup of hot cocoa to drink as they gathered around the fire, Grammi hung the portrait on the wall above the fireplace.

"There," she said. "That's the perfect place for it."

"He's really handsome," Sunni said.

"He certainly was," Grammi nodded. She moved to the couch to sit in-between Cubbi and Sunni. "The bear in that picture is Tavis."

Sunni gasped. "That's Tavis?"

"Tavis?"

"He was my husband, Cubbi," Grammi explained. "You were just a baby when he passed away."

"Why didn't you tell me about him before, Grammi?"

"I didn't think you were old enough," Grammi admitted. "But I guess you've been old enough for a while now, but I could never get myself to bring it up. I suppose it's better late than never."

Grammi settled in with the children to tell them about the man they never got the chance to know. She and Tavis had grown up together in the Glen, but Grammi had always been careful to avoid him. As a young girl, she knew him for all the hair pulling and teasing he did. As teenagers, this behavior mellowed but the teasing never ended. Every time they crossed paths, Tavis had some crass thing to say to her. As young adults, they had more or less gone their separate ways. Grammi learning how to make gummiberry juice while Tavis worked alongside the other carpenters; he'd recently taken Gruffi on as his apprentice. Gruffi was much younger than the two of them, but eager to learn. In those days, the Glen was still filled with plenty of other bears for them to socialize with while keeping out of each other's way.

That changed when the two of them found a friend in Cici, a bear determined to celebrate her birthday with her dearest friends. Grammi had offered to bake the cake when she found out they had already asked Tavis to make an old family recipe. She found herself backed into a corner when Cici encouraged the two of them to make her cake together. She insisted that it would make the whole event that much more special. Grammi didn't quite understand why she was adamant about it, but she didn't have the heart to argue.

As they worked alongside one another in the Glen's kitchen, she was beginning to wish she'd had. It was a disaster from start to finish. Grammi wasn't that fond of playing second fiddle to him in the kitchen as he took control over the entire situation.

"Shouldn't you use a little more sugar?"

"This is how my grandmother used to make it," he said. "And it's how I'm going to make it."

"I just don't think it'll be sweet enough."

"It'll be plenty sweet." He continued to work, frowning when he noticed Grammi watching over his shoulder. "I can't do this with you breathing down my neck."

"I am not breathing down your neck."

"You are!" He was exasperated at this point. "Look, just… Just go sit or something. I got this."

Grammi huffed as she went to the other side of the kitchen. She fumed on her own side of the room as she watched him fiddle with his cake batter. Mentally, she made a note of every improvement she wanted to make to his concoction. The tension could have been cut with a knife. The two tried to stay out of one another's way, but occasionally would bump into each other or be forced to exchange words. The silences between them were merely intermissions for the arguing. Despite all the attempts to get along, the fighting came to a head when Grammi was blocked, once again, from touching the batter for the third and fourth cake tiers; Tavis citing his fear of something happening to his cake as the reason.

"You are _impossible_!" Grammi exclaimed.

"You're not exactly a saint either."

"I swear, Tavis Gummi…."

"Alright, alright, let's just get back to work," he sighed. He started to work with the dough once more. He was no expert at cooking, but he had a feeling that a little extra flour was needed. Reaching over to grab the bag, it was falling out of his grasp before he knew it. In a matter of seconds, the two bears were cover from head to toe in the white powder.

"Tavis…."

"It was an accident!"In spite of himself, he began laughing at the sight of Grammi covered in flour. To his surprise, Grammi soon joined him. While she wanted to be angry, the whole situation was just too absurd and, as much as she wanted to blame him, it was just an accident.

"I think I might know what you're missing," Grammi commented. She took a dollop of ruined cake dough to playfully smear on his muzzle in the shape of a mustache. She didn't know where the sudden urge came from, but she decided to run with it. "There!"

"Well, in that case, we can't let you feel left out, now can we?" He asked before reaching over to give Grammi her own cake mustache. It was hard to get Grammi to hold still, but he eventually finished his task. He settled on giving her the dastardly look with the curled tips. Had it been real, it would have been ripe for villainous twirling. Both could feel their sides start to hurt which forced them to try settling down.

"Figures that only you would find a way to make this much of a mess," Grammi said playfully.

"I am a talented man."

"Talented isn't the word I would use."

"Let's clean this up," Tavis smiled fondly. "Then we can make Cici a proper birthday cake."

"Right, of course," Grammi nodded. The two set to work on cleaning up themselves and the mess around them. The tension was now absent from the room, Grammi noticed. It was a pleasant change.

Tavis was the one to break the silence. "You know, at the party tonight, you wouldn't mind saving a dance just for me, would you?"

"Dance?"

"Just one."

Grammi hesitated. "I guess one little dance wouldn't hurt."

He grinned. "Great! I'll make sure to hold you to that."

Grammi couldn't help but wonder if she would end up regretting this. She shook her head and went back to work. Now that she knew the first few steps of the cake she was able to start on it without much guidance from Tavis. She'd been surprised when he suggested she help with the batter and trusted her to make it with minimal supervision. He kept something of a watchful eye on her without being too pushy or distrusting of her skills. Grammi figured this new-found trust was what helped make the second attempt at baking go much more smoothly. Before they knew it, there was a large wuzzlenut fudge cake ready to be served. They carefully carried it out into the Great Hall for the party. It was already underway as Cici and many of her friends awaited them. They were surprised by the amount of applause awarded them when they entered the room. Once it was in place, Grammi made her way to the punch bowl. She hadn't realized how thirsty she was until that very moment. As she poured herself a cup, Cici, a cute gummi with yellow lemon fur, approached her with a mischievous grin.

"So, how'd it go?" Cici asked.

"How did what go?"

"Baking!"

"Oh, it went fine," Grammi said. "We had a couple of problems, but I think it turned out alright in the end."

"No, not the cake," she said. "Tavis!"

"What about Tavis?"

"Did you two have fun together?"

Grammi raised an eyebrow. "It was alright, I suppose."

"Just alright?"

"Cici, what are you getting at?"

"Ugh, you two are impossible," Cici moaned. "I try to do something nice for your relationship and you don't even take advantage of it!"

"Relationship?"

"Yes!" Cici exclaimed. "You two have so much romantic tension and I just know you'd be perfect for one another."

"Cici, I think maybe you've had one too many gummiberry ales."

"Grammi?" Tavis' voice interrupted. The two women turned to him. "I hope you don't mind my interrupting, but I think I was promised a dance?"

Cici's eyes darted between them, unable to suppress a grin. "Just alright, huh?"

Grammi shot her a look before nodding. "Right," she said. "_One_ dance."

He smiled as he took her hand and led her to the dance floor. They had moved the furniture aside to allow room for dancing without any stubbed toes or bumped furniture. Grammi could see a giddy Cici in the corner of her eye and it took all of her strength not to sigh. Of course, this is why she'd been so determined to get them to bake together. Why she'd settled on Tavis being her perfect match, Grammi didn't quite understand.

"You don't have to look like this is the most painful thing you've been through," he teased.

"Huh?"

"Your expression," he said. "You look like you would rather be anywhere else but here."

"Oh," she hadn't even realized. "No, I was just thinking. I think Cici was trying to set us up with that cake making business."

Tavis laughed. "That's Cici for you. To this day, I'm surprised she didn't try to be a professional matchmaker."

"I gotta say I am too," Grammi chuckled. "But she's never been very good at it, the poor dear. You remember when she tried setting up those two humans without them finding out? She nearly got us all caught in the process."

"Did those two humans ever get together?"

"No," Grammi laughed. "They were already married to other people."

"I feel a bit bad," he admitted with a laugh. "She just wants to help."

Grammi nodded. "I'm sure one of these days she'll get it right. At least, for her sake, I hope she does. She'd be devastated if she never matched one couple."

"She was like that when we were kids, too," he remembered. "She used to read all those fairy tale romances and try and get us to play… what did she call it? Epic Love Journey?"

"No, no, she called it 'For the Love of a Princess,'" Grammi reminded him. "I actually had a lot of fun playing that."

"When you weren't busy being part of the Impossible Pair," he noted. "Those days were always pure torture."

"You're just mad Nogum knew how to put you in your place."

"More like he knew how to torment me."

"Serves you right," Grammi said. "You deserved it for all the bullying you did to me."

"I wasn't bullying, I was teasing," he defended himself.

Grammi scoffed. "That's not how I saw it."

"Well, in that case, I'm sorry."

"You can't just-" Grammi stopped mid-sentence. "Wait… you're _sorry_?" This was not the reaction she'd been expecting. She had been waiting for him to make an excuse or to laugh it off. Instead, she was given the apology she wanted as cub. Now that she had it, she didn't quite know what to do with it.

"I didn't realize it upset you so much," he continued.

"I… Well then, apology accepted."

"Is that why you don't like me?"

"I don't really dislike you," Grammi admitted. "You just try my nerves."

"I could say the same about you."

Grammi tried to think of a reasonable argument, but fell short. "At least I'm pretty cute while doing it, wouldn't you say?" Tavis laughed just as the music came to a stop; there was a twinge of disappointment when Grammi realized the dance was over. "You know, this hasn't been so bad," she said.

He nodded. "No, it hasn't," he agreed. "But you know what would be even better?"

"What?"

"If you'd agree to go out on a date with me."

"Seriously?"

"Just something simple," he explained. "Like a private dinner for just us."

She eyed him a moment. "You're serious?" She asked. "You want a date... with me?"

"I'm as serious as a heart attack."

She didn't know what to say for a moment. Rather than let him know he'd caught her off guard, she crossed her arms. "Tomorrow at seven."

He smiled. "Tomorrow at seven would be perfect."

"I'll meet you in the main hall then," she said before walking away. She could see Cici bouncing in place as she returned to her. Naturally, Cici was determined to help her prepare and it was thanks to all her gushing that Grammi realized she'd been trying to play matchmaker since their childhood years. She'd just been doing such a lackluster job, no one had noticed. As nervous as this made her for the date, it went better than she expected. There wasn't a word of sass from Tavis as they shared a lovely dinner together. Afterward, they spent the rest of the night gazing at the stars. They stayed up until they could barely keep their eyes open. Grammi didn't hesitate in agreeing to see him a second time.

Every time Tavis as for a date since that night, Grammi agreed. The days turned to weeks and weeks to months. Eventually, two years had passed since their first date. They'd had turbulent times, but always came out stronger in the end for it. However, everything changed during the gummiberry harvest. Grammi and the other gummis had been working themselves to the bone to harvest them all and sort them for making gummiberry juice. Grammi could feel her muscles begin to ache and her fingers tire from the constant working. She knew it was important to keep at it, even if a certain someone was encouraging her to stop.

"Come on, Grammi," Tavis urged. "Just for an hour, that's all."

"Tavis, we don't have time to dillydally."

"It's just a picnic, Gram," he said. "Besides, you need to eat to keep your strength up. They wouldn't want you starving yourself before you can finish picking all these berries."

Grammi sighed. "A half hour."

"I'll take it," he grinned. Grammi wasn't pleased about the break when there was so much work to be done. Just the same, she followed him as he headed toward the forest with a basket in hand. No one else seemed bothered by the two leaving; Grammi could have sworn she heard some of the other gummis giggling as they passed by. She paid little attention to it. She was far too frustrated by the interruption.

Frustration turned to awe when Tavis revealed the spot he'd chosen for the picnic. He set up the blanket beside the stream; the water gently flowed over the rocks while the occasional fish could be seen swimming with the current. The grass was a vibrant green and sweet smelling flowers sprung up from the ground around them.

"This is beautiful, Tavis," Grammi smiled.

"I knew you'd change your tune."

"You knew nothing of the sort."

Tavis laughed. "Okay, you win, but I hoped you would."

The immediate surrender gave Grammi pause. "What are you up to?"

"Nothing!" Tavis held his hands up. "Can't I admit when you're right?"

"Whenever you agree with me so soon, it means you're up to something."

"You're paranoid," he teased. "Just sit and enjoy."

Grammi wasn't convinced, but did as he suggested. Before she realized it she started losing track of time as they laughed and talked. Tavis' laugh had always been loud. She could recall times when she feared some human would find them from the sound of it alone. Despite this fear, it had always been a source of joy for her, including the days when the had been at odds. It was infectious and no one was safe from it, she assumed this would even include his enemies.

"You know, I've always had a thing for you," Tavis said.

"Oh, you did not."

"It's true!" He laughed. "When we were kids I used to bug you all the time because I wanted you to notice me."

"You could have just asked to play like a normal cub."

"Where's the fun in that?"

She sighed but then chuckled. "Even back then you were a menace. I couldn't stand you for the longest time."

"But you eventually caved to my charms."

"I'm still trying to figure out exactly when I lost my common sense and thought dating you was a good idea."

Tavis laughed and kissed her hair. "I promised myself one day I'd get you to go on a date with me and I always keep my promises. The day you said yes, I figured I could die a happy man."

"You know, for all my jokes about it, I'm glad I decided to give you a chance," she admitted. The two smiled and enjoyed a moment of silence together. One of the nice things about Tavis was she could spend moments or even hours without saying a word. Conversation wasn't needed for them to find joy in each other's company. When Grammi realized they'd been gone far too long she mentioned that they needed to get back.

She began to clean up the mess they'd made during their lunch when Tavis' cleared his throat. He waited until she turned his attention to him to speak. "There's one last thing I wanted to talk to you about."

"Yes?"

Tavis scooted closer with a grin. "Close your eyes?"

Grammi rolled her eyes, but then covered them. "We should be getting back, Tavis."

"Just one more minute," he said. She could hear him opening the picnic basket once more and fiddling with something. She had to fight the urge to uncover her eyes. "Okay, open them."

Grammi uncovered her eyes. In Tavis' hands was a water globe. The base was made of sterling silver and cradled the perfectly formed ball of glass. Inside of it, there were little specs to appear like sparkling snowflakes whenever it was turned upside down. Mounted in the center, there was a hand-painted glass turtle dove that sparkled every time it caught the light.

"Tavis…"

"Wait, wait," he stopped her. He turned it upside down to reveal a winding key. After a few spins, he turned it back into the proper position as a gentle song played. Grammi immediately placed it as an old gummi lullaby they had both grown up with.

"It's beautiful, Tavis."

He smiled. "Grammi Gummi… with this gift," he began, "I ask if you would do me the honor of becoming my wife."

Grammi stared in disbelief. It had always been a custom for potential spouses to make a proposal gift. The majority of gummis would buy a gift or make something simple, but she realized that when Tavis did something, he made sure to put his whole heart into it. She took it from him and cradled it. It was impossible to keep the tears from flowing at that point.

She looked up to see he was patiently waiting for his answer. Setting the water globe aside, she launched herself forward for a hug. "Yes! Of course!"

Unfortunately for both of them, Grammi took him off guard and sent him flying backwards. Grammi didn't even realize what had happened until she could feel water splashing on her face. The two of them had fallen back into the shallow stream with Tavis on his back. Naturally, the other bear laughed at the situation.

"Tavis, I'm sorry!" Grammi was laughing as well.

"You are not," he teased. Grabbing her by the waist, he quickly pulled her into the water to get them equally wet. Laughing even harder, Grammi splashed him before the two shared a brief kiss. He smiled as he hugged her. "Grammi, thank you for making this one of the best days of my life."

"I should be saying that to you," she said.

"Grammi?" Zummi's voice could be heard in the distance. "Tavis?"

"We'll be right there, Zummi," Tavis called out. He turned back to Grammi. "How about we go tell them the good news?"

"I would love to," Grammi smiled. She took hold of his hand before heading back to the Glen for a change of clothing. Once they had changed, Grammi couldn't keep the news to herself and she was excited to off her proposal gift. It was only right that she hunted Cici down first to tell her. After she had finished bouncing with glee, Cici made sure everyone in the Glen knew she had finally succeeded in matching a couple. Of course, Cici made sure to help with all of the plans for the wedding. It would be another year before they held the official ceremony, Grammi wanting everything to be perfect for the big day. Travis stayed out of her way to let her do everything she wanted. He admitted to her that his only concern was that she was happy.

The wedding itself had been quite a spectacle. As gummi tradition stated, the party would go on for three days after the ceremony. It was a very quiet and respectful ceremony where they vowed to stay by one another's side until death. It was the part the cubs in the Glen looked forward to the least as they fidgeted in their seats. When the bride and groom kissed, the room erupted into applause.

The rest of the time was filled with dancing, singing and eating. Gummiberry pies were baked alongside the couple's favorite foods. One of the unspoken traditions was when the couple would try to find a moment of alone time. Tavis and Grammi rarely succeeded in this.

Eventually, the activities died down and things were back to the way they were in what felt like the blink of an eye. During the celebration, Grammi found herself eager for it to end so they could be alone. Afterward, she missed all the fussing and partying. However, Tavis quickly gave her something else to focus on. The couple didn't take long to decide that they wanted children and they started to plan on additions to their family.

What they didn't expect was for time to pass with no results. It didn't seem to matter how hard they tried; Grammi found she was still without child. Worried, she visited the only doctor the Glen had during those days. He was a gummi who was a few years older and well versed in human and gummi medicine. She knew he would figure out what was wrong.

The news the doctor gave her felt like a punch in the gut. It took all her strength to leave his makeshift office and head back to the room she shared with Tavis. She kept her head down low and refused to meet anyone's eyes out of embarrassment. In spite of the logical side of her brain, it felt as though they all knew. Not only did they all know, but silently judged her for it. Seeing Tavis' grinning face as she entered their bedroom only made the hollow feeling in her chest worse.

"Grammi, there you are!" Tavis' smile faded when he noticed her solemn look. "Gram, what's wrong?"

Grammi didn't answer for a moment. She didn't feel capable of saying the words until she felt his arms wrap around her. "Tavis… we're not going to have any children."

"What?"

"We will never have children," she replied. "I'm… I went to see Doc and…"

When Tavis noticed the pained expression on her face, he started to rub her back. "It's okay," he said.

"We're never going to be parents," Grammi said. She was unable to stop herself from crying. "And it's all my fault."

"Hey now," Tavis scolded. "Don't talk like that. You didn't do anything wrong. Life just has different plans for us. And, you know, we've got plenty of cubs around here to help look after. It's not the same, but maybe it's what we're meant to do. Help other parents from caving in on themselves." She didn't lift her head to meet his gaze. He reached down to hook his index finger under her chin and nudged her to look up. "And we still have each other. That's what counts."

"You're not upset?"

"No," he shook his head. "I know we're both disappointed, but we'll get through this. I don't think there's anything the two of us can't handle. I promise you that and you know I keep my promises."

Relief washed over her even though the sadness lingered. It stung knowing she would never have children of her own, but the fact Tavis would always be by her side comforted her. After that day, the two of them became dedicated to helping the other parents in the Glen care for their little ones. Sunni's birth had been a bittersweet day; the joy of a child's birth tarnished by the death of her mother. The ordeal had proven to be too much for her fragile body. Grammi promised the almost despondent father that she would do everything in her power to help them.

In the year of Cubbi's birth, life was especially cruel to Gummi Glen. Disease and famine caused their numbers to dwindle drastically. Sunni's father and Cubbi's parents were among those who passed away early on; they had sacrificed every morsel of food to keep their children alive as disease racked their bodies. As for Cici, malnutrition claimed her life before any disease could.

"It was up to us to take care of you," Grammi explained to the cubs. "Tavis always made sure that you two were well cared for."

"I wish I could have gotten to know him," Cubbi said.

"Me too."

"I wish you could have too," Grammi smiled. "He would have loved being able to see the two of you grow up."

"What happened to him?" Cubbi wondered.

"He… he became very sick."

"Couldn't you have gotten him some medicine?"

"No, Cubbi dear," Grammi ruffled his hair. "There are some things in this world we can't cure. We tried, but there was nothing we could do even with all our know-how. And once Doc passed away, we were completely helpless." She wiped the tears from her eyes before placing her hands on her hips. "I think maybe you two should get back to work," she said. "I've got a few more chores of my own to handle."

"Yes, Grammi," they both said in unison. They took their cups to the kitchen before getting back to unpacking. Grammi, however, didn't immediately go back to her own work. She turned her eyes back to the portrait of her late husband and sighed. The memory of his passing felt as if it had happened only the day before.

Grammi had been sitting beside the bed they had shared for so many years. The room was dark with only the candle on the nightstand to illuminate their faces. Tavis smiled as he looked to his wife with tired eyes.

"We've had some good years."

"The best years of my life," she said. She wanted to deny it was happening. Tell him to stop talking like that, but she knew better. It was their last chance to say their goodbyes.

He smiled. "I told you that you wouldn't regret marrying me," he teased. "I'm going to miss you."

"I'm going to miss you, too."

"I love you," he added. "Always remember that."

"I will," Grammi kissed his forehead. "And I love you, too."

"Those cubs will need you to stay strong for them," he continued. "I know you can and will be. And I want you to remember that I'll always be looking out for you."

Grammi couldn't formulate a response. Words were racing through her mind, but she couldn't get them to form any sort of coherent thought or phrase. Instead, she began to cry and rested her head against his chest as he stroked her hair. They stayed like that until Tavis' eyes slowly began to close.

Even before his breathing stopped, she had known those were the last words she would ever hear him say. The memory hit her hard. It was as if someone had shot her through the chest. She knew she would need a moment to recover from the reminiscing. Grammi retreated to her bedroom; she had only been able to save a few items from her old room. On her nightstand was an old familiar water globe. Grammi gave a sad smile when she looked to it, sitting on the edge of her bed to gently lift it. She turned the small handle on the bottom to wind it.

The melody played just as loudly as it did the day it was new. She could hear the gears turning inside of it as it played. She leaned back in bed to let the tune remind her of those old, love-filled days of her youth.

With that song, she knew there would always be a little piece of Tavis with her for the rest of her life.


	2. Sunni's Oil

Sunni watched her reflection in the mirror as she twirled. Grammi had hemmed one of Kaia's old dresses to fit Sunni a bit better. The vibrant blue, mermaid line dress made her feel more like an adult. She practically was one and it was about time she started looking the part, she figured. It wasn't like anything she'd ever seen in Dunwyn before meeting Kaia. The gummis who had lived in New Gumbrea for centuries had nothing similar to offer either.

"Gusto is going to love this," she said aloud. With her chores done for the day, she was free to locate Gusto to show off. She lifted the skirt of her dress to keep from tripping over it as she set out on her quest. She could hear Grammi calling out to her about being home for supper, but she didn't have time to stop and confirm she'd heard. She quickly realized that finding Gusto was a task that proved to be more difficult than she anticipated. When he wasn't at his cottage, she had to comb Ursalia in hopes of finding him.

After checking the usual places, she was beginning to lose hope. "Where is he?" She asked. The dejected gummi sat on one of the benches in the town square and rested her chin against her fist.

"Hey, Sunni!"

"Buddi?" Sunni lifted her head to look over to him. He had a fishing pole slung over his shoulder and waved to her with his free hand. Since the move to Ursalia, Gruffi and Buddi had been going on regular fishing trips. Occasionally, Cubbi would join them, but he had far less time for it now that he was able to train under real gummi knights. Buddi had admitted to Sunni that he'd noticed Gruffi was having trouble adjusting to Cubbi's new busy schedule. As a solution, Buddi had decided to reach out to him in friendship. Since that day he'd found Gruffi feeling more and more like an uncle to him.

"Oh wow," Buddi marveled as he got closer. "You look great, Sunni."

"Thanks," Sunni said. "Hey, have you seen Gusto? I've been looking for him all morning."

Buddi's face fell. "Oh. Yeah, I saw him heading out of the city with Kaia as we were coming back."

"Do you know where to?" Sunni hadn't been alarmed by Kaia being with him. Unsurprisingly, the two had found a great deal of common ground between them. This led to the two of them bouncing creative ideas off one another even if they were for different mediums. Sunni was a bit jealous at times. She couldn't understand why Gusto didn't see her as a good sounding board for creative ideas. She was just as creative as Kaia was and in very similar ways.

"I don't know exactly," Buddi admitted. "I can show you which way I saw them going though."

"Would you?" Sunni smiled. "Thank you so much, Buddi!"

While the other cub was more than happy to help, he didn't quite understand Sunni's fascination with Gusto. In fact, swooning over Gusto seemed to be something a lot of the women in town did. Even if they had no interest in chasing after his heart, he would hear them talk about how attractive he was. When it was about his looks, Buddi could understand to a certain extent. It was when they went gaga over his artistic side that he would get a bit lost. Although Gusto was talented, his artistic nature could get his more negative traits to bubble to the surface. He could be a lot more manic and obsessed to the point he couldn't always see past his latest masterpiece. Did girls really like that, he wondered. He did fine some comfort for his ego when he could go home and find that the Barbic women weren't interested in him.

After returning his fishing pole home, he set out to help Sunni find Gusto to show off the new gown she wore. He also assumed it would turn into her spending the rest of the day with him. It always did. He secretly hoped that the other two would be too far ahead to catch up to them. Unfortunately for Buddi, this wasn't the case. Gusto's canvas was still blank as the artist stood a few feet away from it. Kaia sat on one of the nearby rocks while watching him.

"There he is!"

"Maybe we shouldn't bug them," Buddi suggested. "They might be having one of those moments grown-ups have, like Gritty and Ursa."

"They're not like Gritty and Ursa though," Sunni argued. "They're just friends. Two adults can just be friends, Buddi."

"Yeah, but I think they might be more than that."

Sunni shook her head even though Buddi had successfully planted a seed of doubt. She turned her attention back to Gusto and Kaia who were mid-conversation at that point. Sunni could feel her heart sinking to the bottom of her stomach as she watched them. She couldn't hear a word of it, but each time Gusto laughed at anything Kaia uttered it felt like little splinters were embedding themselves into her heart.

"Grown-ups are so weird," Buddi said "And Gusto has to be the weirdest."

"He's not weird!"

"He is so!" Buddi laughed. "I don't get why you make such a big deal out of him. And he's so old."

"He's not old," Sunni argued. "He's _older_ and sophisticated."

"Sophisticated?"

"Yes." She nodded. "Not that I expect you to know anything about that."

"Oh yeah?"

"Hey, cubsters," Gusto called out. "I didn't know you were planning on joining us."

"Hi, Gusto!" She greeted as she hurried over to him. She made sure that once she was close enough, she showed off her new dress adequately. In order to play it cool, Sunni acted as though she had wanted to show off for both of them.  
"Notice anything different?"

"Looking pretty good there, Sun-Sun," Gusto complimented. "Kaikai's old outfits really suit you."

"Looks like Grammi did a bang up job hemming it for you," Kaia commented. "I wouldn't have even noticed."

"Thanks!" Sunni was beaming, mostly from Gusto's compliment. "What are you two doing out here?"

"Gus has been waiting for some kind of inspiration to strike," Kaia explained. "As you can see, nothing has quite taken hold."

"I thought there would be _something_ out here," Gusto commented. "Something majestic or even the beauty of the cruelty of nature. Something that speaks of perfection against an imperfect backdrop."

"Right," Kaia said. "But so far he's been rewarded with weeds and the occasional lizard. And apparently, little goat-man monsters aren't inspiring."

"Would you stop trying to make that happen?" Gusto retorted.

Sunni frowned a bit as the two of them argued, if you could call it an argument. It was more like disagreeing in a teasing manner. Before she could become too engrossed in her thoughts, she noticed something. Beside one of the rocks was a strange puddle of green goo she'd never noticed before. When there was a break in Gusto and Kaia's conversation, she spoke up.

"Kaia?"

"What's up, kiddo?"

"What's that stuff?" Sunni wondered. She pointed to the sludge beside the rock.

"No idea," Kaia admitted. "I wouldn't touch the stuff though. You'll get worms or something."

"Worms?" Sunni raised an eyebrow.

"Well," Kaia hesitated. It was clear she had no real defense for her comment. "Whatever, you might get sick. It's best to leave it alone."

"Yes, ma'am," Sunni chuckled. She was a bit disappointed when Kaia was called back over to Gusto who had an idea to pitch. Artie must have had plans for the day and left Gusto and Kaia to figure out things alone. Thanks to Buddi's comments earlier, she couldn't help but wonder if Artie actually had things to do or if he left them alone because there really _was_ something there.

Sunni watched the two of them discussing the different options Gusto had, which made her feel more and more like a third wheel. It was then a brilliant idea struck. She knew exactly how to get Gusto's attention back to her.

"Hey, Gusto!" Sunni called out. "Look at this!"

She got to her feet to stand atop one of the rocks in hopes it would give Gusto an inspiring view. He wanted to see beauty standing out against a plain and ordinary world and what could be more beautiful than her dress, she reasoned.

She never had the chance to get any kind of reaction from either adult when her foot slipped out from under her. With a yelp, she fell into the strange puddle beside it. The unusual green substance covered her and she recoiled in disgust when she could taste it in her mouth. The paste-like goop had a bitter taste unlike anything she'd ever had. She attempted to spit it out, but it coated her mouth like honey.

"Sunni!" Buddi hurried to help her back up. "Are you okay?"

"No," she said weakly. She perked up slightly when she noticed Gusto had rushed to her aid as well, pulling away from Buddi to lean against him. She attempted to drum up a little sympathy for now. "I really need to go home."

"Of course, Sunners," Gusto said sympathetically. Buddi rolled his eyes at the display, but followed as Sunni leaned against Gusto for support.

"Buddi?" Kaia turned to the younger bear. "You Barbics don't happen to know what this stuff is, do you?"

"We don't know," Buddi answered. "We see it around the gulch and kept away from it. This is the first time I've seen anybody touch it."

"It tastes so gross," Sunni moaned.

"Don't worry, kid, we'll get you home and cleaned up," Kaia promised.

As they returned home, Sunni was genuinely growing weaker. Gusto was practically carrying her through the door when they arrived, Grammi immediately fussing over her and taking her into the bathroom to clean up. Naturally, Gusto had to hear an earful from Gruffi for not keeping a better eye on the children. His attention was soon diverted when Sunni was having trouble keeping the contents of her stomach down and unable to get herself out of bed.

Zummi was bombarded with questions about the green ooze when none of Grammi's remedies had any effect. Unfortunately, the wizard didn't know any of the answers to their questions nor did the Great Book. In desperation, he asked for Valentina to come and look over the girl. The group explained to her everything that had happened and the unusual substance that covered her when she returned home.

"Do you know what that substance was?" Zummi asked.

"All too well," she frowned. "Based off of what I've seen, I'm certain it's venenum fons."

"Venenum fons?" Gruffi repeated.

Valentina slowly sat in one of the armchairs. "It's an unusual substance that can only be found in very few places. I didn't realize Ursalia would be one of them. I've had to teach many of my students to stay away from it. If ingested, it will cause you to grow weak and listless. Your breathing will start to slow as well as your heart rate until…."

"Until?" Grammi urged.

"Until they pass away," Valentina said.

"But there was no mention of it in the Great Book," Zummi said.

"It's relatively new," Valentina explained. "No one is sure why, but it only started appearing in the last 10 years. I have only seen a handful of gummis come into contact since I learned about it. Usually the infected person has a week to find the cure."

"Okay, so what is the cure?" Gruffi demanded.

"There's only one," Valentina said grimly. "An antidote made from lavender botrus."

"So then we go get it," Gruffi said. "Where is it?"

Valentina sighed. "I don't know the exact location. I only know that it's a dangerous journey."

"Great," Gruffi could feel his heart sink. It took all his strength not to yell in frustration.

"But," Valentina added, "I know someone who has made the journey before. She would know exactly how to find it."

Hope began to overtake Gruffi's despair as he sat upright. "Good. You go get her and tell her that we're going. I don't plan to waste any time. Tummi, you come with me. I want everybody else to stay here and keep an eye on Sunni."

"What about me?" Buddi asked.

"No," Gruffi said. "Sunni's going to need you here for moral support, got it?"

Buddi nodded and glanced to the stairwell. "Right."

"Grammi, we're going to need your help packing."

Normally, Grammi would have pushed for a more polite method of asking, but there was no time for silly arguments at the moment. Gruffi's bossiness was warranted for a change. The Glens were relieved when Valentina wasn't gone long; she returned with a younger gummi who was closer to Gruffi's age than her own. Her black hair was pinned back into a basic chignon and her fur was what could be described as lemon chiffon. Unlike many of the gummis in Ursalia, she wore a pair of dark brown pants made from animal hide with boots and shirt. What drew everyone's eye, however, was her left arm. The lower half of it from the elbow down was missing.

"This is Tikaani," Valentina introduced.

"This is your expert?" Gruffi asked as he kept his eyes on her missing arm. "What good is she going to do?"

Valentina scowled. "Gruffi."

"I could leave," Tikaani commented with an even tone. "But then your child would die, wouldn't she?"

Gruffi was stunned into silence. He knew she was right which was what made the situation all the more difficult to deal with. He wasn't fond of the idea of being at someone else's mercy – especially someone he didn't know – but the risk to Sunni's life was too great to argue with her.

"We leave tonight," Gruffi stated. There would be no apologies. "Tummi, you're coming with me."

"I'll come, too, Gruff," Gusto offered.

"No," Tikaani cut in. "The less, the better. I'll take two of you and that's it."

Gruffi nodded. "Gusto, you stay here and do what you can to help Grammi. Tummi will go with us."

"It will be a four day journey," Tikaani said. "Prepare for it. I will meet you by the gates in an hour."

She left no room to argue and Gruffi saw no reason to try it. As quickly as she entered the home, she was gone. They had already gathered a majority of the supplies necessary to take with them, but Grammi was able to make sure that they had enough food with them as well. When they reached the front gates, Tikaani was already there. She had packed light with only one knapsack slung over her shoulder.

"Ready?" She asked. Gruffi had to admit that the lack of emotion in her voice was eerie. Tummi, on the other hand, overlooked it. It was a serious mission, Tummi reasoned, and he wondered if her detached behavior was a way to keep levelheaded. He had a feeling that they would need someone to be the rock of the group. As strong as Gruffi was, he wasn't immune to fear and fear was something that would be following them every step of the way.

"Ready." Tummi saluted. He hoped that it would be seen an international sign of respect.

Tikaani didn't react to it. "We'll have to take a boat," she explained.

"Fine," Gruffi said. "I'll take over steering."

"Do you know how to steer a boat?"

"I know enough about boats to handle it."

"I didn't ask if you knew about boats," Tikaani said. "I asked if you knew how to steer."

"I do," Tummi said. "I've been studying boats my whole life! I even built one myself once."

Gruffi scoffed. "Don't remind me."

"But Gruffi, I know what I'm doing," Tummi argued. "I can get us there if Tikaani acts as my navigator."

"Nothing doing," Gruffi said. "We-"

"Stop talking." Tikaani's frankness immediately silenced him He was used to Grammi telling him to shut up, but the forcefulness behind Tikaani's voice was alarming. There was no anger or frustration; it was a simple command that she anticipated he follow. "Tummi," she continued. "You'll steer. The two of you can fight over the decision when a child isn't dying."

Gruffi wasn't sure if that was intended to be a guilt trip, but it worked. Tikaani was right about one thing. Sunni was the most important part of all of this. Tummi hadn't meant to start a fight, but he knew he was the best one to take control of the ship with his experience and knowledge. He only wanted to help Sunni in the best way he knew how, which was to create a fast and safe trip to find the plant.

"Don't worry, Gruffi," Tummi said. He didn't want there to be any animosity between them. "You can be my first mate!"

"Great." Gruffi sighed. He couldn't complain once they reached the boat. Tummi proved that he really did know his stuff; he was able to tell Gruffi and Tikaani each step that was necessary to set sail. It wasn't until everything was to his satisfaction that they set off. It was a smaller ship that Tikaani had gotten from Chancellor Berrybaum for the trip. It was safely hidden away in a small cove beside the beach to keep it away from prying eyes. It had the traditional gummi crest carved into the front of it as a symbol of gummi pride. Tummi seemed pleased with how sturdy it was and it wasn't long before he gave permission for them to set sail.

The trip by boat would take a day and night in and of itself; they wouldn't arrive to the island until the next morning. Gruffi had to admit, it was thanks to Tummi that the first half of the trip was rather uneventful. Mother Nature seemed to be on their side as the weather stayed clear even during the night while they slept. Gruffi hated the feeling of being useless. Despite the title of 'first mate' there was only so much for Gruffi to do and all of it was just following Tummi's orders.

He felt relieved when he spotted land. After hours at sea, he'd soon be in his element again and able to take charge. Sitting on the sidelines wasn't something he could do so easily, but the victory was short lived. The group was nearly knocked off their feet as a force from below caused the boat to start to tip.

"What is that?" Gruffi asked. When the boat had settled, he hurried to the edge to look down onto the water. He caught sight of a scaly tail of some strange creature he had no time to identify. Tummi was shouting orders behind him that Tikaani was scrambling to follow.

The three were knocked over once more by a wave crashing into the boat from a massive body slamming down into the water beside them. Somewhere during the chaos, Gruffi was able to get a good look at what was happening.

The silvery scales and catlike eyes were unmistakable. It was a sea monster threatening to sink them. Its tail whipped against the side of the boat with a thud nearly tipping it again. Water splashed onto the deck and Gruffi struggled to keep from falling back.

"We gotta stop that thing!"

"I'll take care of it," Tikaani said.

The creature lifted its head from the water to let out a loud screeching sound. The three gummis stared down at it, Tummi and Gruffi frozen in their spots. Tikaani was the first to make her move. She reached for a harpoon that she had kept nearby and began to take aim. It wasn't long before Tummi notice her movements, grabbing onto her arm to jerk it down.

"No!" Tummi cried. "You can't kill it!"

"We kill it or it kills us."

"There has to be another way," Tummi said.

Tikaani looked to Gruffi. "Do something about your child."

"He-"

The boat nearly tipped again. When Tummi fell back, Tikaani took that as her chance. The second she had a clear shot, she let the harpoon go. With one pained cry, the creature disappeared beneath the waves; all that was left behind was the bloodstained water.

"Is it dead?" Tummi asked.

"I don't know," Tikaani answered. "We should get to shore in case it isn't."

Gruffi waited until they had gotten safely to shore before getting in Tikaani's face. "What's the matter with you? You didn't have to kill it."

"And what solution did you have to offer?"

"You didn't give us time to think of one!" Gruffi snapped. "Maybe if you'd listened to Tummi, he could have come up with something."

Tikaani said nothing for a moment. "We should continue on. Your child has no time for our bickering. You can admonish me later for the sin you feel I've committed today."

Gruffi huffed as he gathered up their things. Tummi didn't quite know what to make of the situation. He was disappointed in the decision Tikaani had made, but he felt far more uneasy than angry. Frowning, he gathered his own bags and began to follow the other two.

After a few paces, Tikaani nodded her head toward the mountain on the other side of the island. "We have to get to that mountain. Lavender botrus only grows in high places."

"Fine," Gruffi said. "The sooner we get there, the better."

Gruffi walked on ahead. He was no longer in the mood to try and reach out to Tikaani in any form. Tummi attempted to keep pace with Tikaani rather than avoid her. While he wanted to be angry, he felt that understanding her was far more important. She seemed so confident in her actions that it made him uneasy.

"Tikaani?"

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Yes."

"Don't you feel a little bad?" Tummi wondered sheepishly. "Killing the sea monster, I mean."

"I don't take pleasure in taking life," Tikaani replied, "but my priority is to stay alive. I regret that it came to this, but I won't be overcome with guilt. I don't take chances with other people's lives."

Tummi nodded. He didn't know where he stood, but he felt relieved knowing it hadn't been a heartless act. In her mind, it had truly been kill or be killed.

"Your desire to save it was noble," Tikaani added. "But sometimes nobility can be your worst enemy."

He had nothing to say to that. It was something that he'd been raised to believe the opposite of; no matter the situation, it was important to be noble and to find the most peaceful solution if possible. He briefly wondered about the changes that would have been made to his life had Tikaani's attitude been a strong force on him in his childhood. Would he be more like her? Her reasoning was far more mechanical than emotional. It was different than anything he was used to seeing and he wasn't quite sure he liked it.

Things weren't any less stressful back at home. Buddi had been spending late nights at the Glen household and Ursa made no attempts to stop him. He never wanted to leave Sunni's side and no one in the Glen household felt the need to step in and separate him from her. In the beginning stages, she was still able to talk even though her voice would be soft or raspy. Slowly, she began to lose the strength she needed to speak. She was spening most of her time sleeping with Grammi forcing her to wake up occasionally for food and liquids.

The adults kept close by to watch over her, but there was only so much any of them could do. Buddi took over most of the work from Grammi and she didn't feel it right to stop him. She found that Buddi's help gave her far too much time to spend worrying with the others. She kept trying to occupy her time with menial tasks to keep from thinking too much about possible outcomes.

Gusto sat at the kitchen table as he stared into his cup of coffee. Grammi stood beside him at the sink to clean the dishes for what must have been the tenth time while Kaia was put in charge of drying them. Cubbi had been listless since he'd heard the news. He sat beside Gusto and rested his cheek against the palm of his hand. Waiting for Gruffi to return was the hardest thing he'd ever done.

"This is my fault," Gusto admitted. "I should have been keeping a better eye on the kids."

"It was an accident," Kaia said. "It all happened so fast no one really had time to react."

Gusto frowned. "I knew the gorge was dangerous. As soon as I saw they followed us out there, I should have focused more on them."

"Now you stop that," Grammi scolded. "Sitting around blaming yourself won't do Sunni a lick of good. We need to keep it together for her sake."

"Grammi?" Cubbi said. "Do you think Sunni will be alright?"

Grammi frowned. "I hope so, sugar."

"I'm sure they'll get back in time," Kaia said.

Gusto nodded with a sad smile. "Yeah, you can always count on Gruff to get the job done."

Grammi wanted to believe that, but she knew there was room for failure regardless of Gruffi's dedication. "Let's just hope they return soon."

"She'll be fine." The sound of Buddi's voice caused them to jump. "She's strong – one of the strongest people I know. She'll be able to fight this until they get back."

"Buddi, sweetie," Grammi said. "

Buddi cut her off before she could finish. "Maybe you want to give up hope, but I won't!"

"Buddi," Grammi said, but it was too late. He was already running back upstairs to Sunni's room, visibly upset. Grammi hurried up after him to find him leaning on Sunni's bed, crying. "Sweetheart…."

"I don't want her to die."

"I know, dear, I know." Grammi sat beside him and placed a hand on his back. She stayed by his side as he continued to cry. Grammi fought the urge to join him in his sorrow. She refused to leave him and gently rubbed his back without saying a word. He needed his chance to cry and she would give it to him.

Back on the island, the gummis were making headway. Gruffi was feeling a bit more confident now that they were facing very little opposition in the forest.

"Maybe we should stop to take a lunch break, "Tummi said.

Tikaani shook her head. "No. We eat once we reach the base of the mountain."

"For once, I agree," Gruffi said. "We'll need our strength to get up there."

The walk was tiring; Tummi's feet were throbbing with pain and they weren't anywhere near their destination yet. They crossed small streams, numerous trees and bushes with strange prickly leaves. Tikaani seemed well acquainted with the layout of the island and was even able to warn them of various insects and snakes to keep away from. Tummi was enthralled by the sights and sounds around him as there were brightly colored animals he'd never encountered before. He kept close to the two older bears to keep safe. He knew that wandering off too far from them could have disastrous results, especially if it slowed them down too much. He was already a bit slower than them and he wouldn't be the reason that they let Sunni and the others down.

Tikaani paused when she reached a dip in the landscape to look down at a small village. It was a human village from what Gruffi and Tummi could tell with quaint little homes scattered about. They couldn't see any humans, but Gruffi wasn't one to take chances.

"We'll have to go around," Gruffi said. "We don't want to risk being spotted by humans."

Tikaani shook her head. "No, the city is abandoned. The humans left this place many years ago and the only ones who stayed behind are long dead. We can cut through."

"Are you sure?" Tummi asked.

Tikaani didn't answer. Tummi wasn't sure if she disliked being questioned or if there was some other reasoning for her lack of an answer. The two watched as she approached a strange wire that was attached to one of the nearby trees while the other end of it was attached to one of the homes in the village.

"What are you doing?" Gruffi asked.

Before she could give a response – if she had even planned to – the answer clicked in Tummi's brain. "A zip-line!"

Tikaani nodded. "It's the fastest way down."

"Did the humans put it here?" Tummi asked.

"No," Tikaani said. "I did."

"Okay, but how do you expect us to use it?" Gruffi asked. "We didn't bring anything to connect to it."

"I did." Tikaani tossed two harnesses to Gruffi. She gave him no time to respond before she hooked herself up onto the zip-line and pushed herself down toward the city.

"I guess we better follow her," Tummi said.

"Here." Gruffi attached the harness to Tummi. He knew Tummi had never done anything like this before and it was up to him to make sure he did it without any serious injury. He'd let Tummi go down first in order to insure there were no mistakes. The last thing this mission needed was a Tummi pancake in the valley below, he told himself.

"Hold on tight." Gruffi hooked the harness onto the line before double checking the straps around Tummi. He tugged on them to make sure each one was secure. "When you get to the bottom, use your feet to slow yourself down."

Tummi nodded. He was about to push off when he felt Gruffi tug him back a second to check him over one last time. "Gruffi?"

"You can never be too careful," he said. "We don't know what kind of shape she keeps her things in."

After the second check, he finally let Tummi head down to the village and even gave a helpful push. He watched the other slide down nervously. Whenever he was forced to use equipment he was unfamiliar with it was always nerve-wracking. For all he knew, these harnesses had been rotting in some corner of Tikaani's house without so much as a glance to see if they were still sturdy. When he felt like there would be enough distance between them, he glided down the zip-line as well. Tummi waited for him at the bottom to help catch him and unhook him from the line.

It didn't take long for Gruffi to realize that Tikaani hadn't been lying. It was easier to see that the buildings were in disrepair now that they were inside the village. There were a few that looked as though they could cave in at any moment. Gruffi's paternal instincts were difficult to ignore; he continued to look back to Tummi to make sure the younger gummi hadn't gotten injured or wandered away.

"Tread carefully," Gruffi said. "There could be all sorts of danger around here."

Tummi nodded. He knew the warning was meant more for him than Tikaani which stung. He couldn't figure out why Gruffi still refused to trust him or believe he was old enough to take care of himself. Zummi had told him before that Gruffi had a hard time accepting he and the younger kids were growing up, but he wasn't sure how much he bought that. Both Gruffi and Tummi felt a bit of relief when they reached the edge of the village. It felt like one giant leap closer to the mountain.

By the edge of the city, there was a strange pit that the villagers had built a stone bridge over. The bridge was old and bits of it had already fallen into what looked like thick mud below. Tummi moved slowly for fear the aging stone would collapse underneath him. Gruffi urged him to hurry up which Tummi responded to by quickening his pace.

Before he could reach the other side, the stone beneath his foot gave way. He crashed into the pit below with a cold splat as he hit the bottom. He felt the thick mud clinging to him and reaching up to his thighs. He started to sink even further when he attempted to climb out.

"Gruffi!" Tummi shouted. The struggling lead to him sinking deeper and he began to panic. "It's quicksand!"

It was the only logical explanation. His heart began to race as he struggled further, reaching for the outstretched hand Gruffi offered. Their fingers couldn't reach. Gruffi was scrambling to find an alternative method of pulling him up. Tikaani, however, kept to the side and watched as the two struggled to get Tummi out of his predicament.

"Hold on, kid, I'll get you," Gruffi said. He could barely think straight as he looked for some sort of tree branch or some other option to save his friend. Tummi was near tears which only made Gruffi kick into overdrive. It was at that moment he noticed Tikaani kneeling by the edge of the cliff to watch Tummi. He could feel his blood pressure rising at her lack of effort.

"Why are you just standing there?" Gruffi demanded.

"There is no quicksand on this island."

The three bears shared an awkward silence. "What?"

"Actually," Tummi said. His cheeks were slowly turning red as he looked down sheepishly. "Now that you mention it, I think I stopped sinking. I must have hit the bottom."

Tummi tried to shrink away from Gruffi's glare but the mud kept him anchored in place. With a grunt, Gruffi stormed off toward the mountain while muttering under his breath. Tummi could only catch a curse word or two as he disappeared into the trees. He frowned as Tikaani helped him out of the "quicksand" and couldn't get himself to meet her eyes.

"Word of advice," Tikaani said. "In actual quicksand, don't struggle."

He nodded. Keeping his head down, he followed the other two without another word. He was already embarrassed and he didn't want to contribute to the situation by tripping over his words in an attempt to explain himself. It had been terrifying in the moment, but with the crisis averted he looked back on his actions in shame. It suddenly felt so obvious that he wasn't sinking in quicksand and he wasn't sure what made him jump to such a conclusion.

Traveling in silence, the group managed to make it to the bottom of the mountain without anything else being thrown their way. As they promised Tummi, they stopped to have a quick lunch to build up their strength of sandwiches, carrot sticks and something Tikaani called anlleq. Tummi didn't know what it was, but he was enjoying it. When they finished, they realized that there was no path that they could take which meant that the three would have to climb their way up. Gruffi glanced to Tikaani, taking note of her missing arm. He checked his knapsack for some kind of rope as he formulated a plan.

"Tikaani, I can carry you up," Gruffi offered.

"I'm fine." Before Gruffi could tell her to stop being stubborn, he saw her attaching some strange device to her arm. It looked like a traditional mountaineering axe, but it was designed to strap around the remaining part of her arm. Without a word, she began to scale the mountain with the axe acting as a second hand. Gruffi watched in surprise as she didn't struggle in the slightest.

"You gotta trust her a little more, Gruffi," Tummi said gently. He couldn't blame Gruffi for wanting to help. He'd been in that position before himself with Trina. "She's probably used to doing this stuff without any help."

"Hm." Gruffi didn't care for looking like a fool when he'd been trying to assist her. The fact they couldn't keep up with her made him feel even more idiotic than before.

"I guess she's done this a lot," Tummi commented as they struggled to keep up. He couldn't help but notice Gruffi's dour expression. "It's okay, Gruffi. You just wanted to help. I was like that with-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Gruffi didn't want the pep talk. He appreciated the effort although he would never admit gave it a rest after that. They continued to climb while Tummi would occasionally beg for some kind of break that was always denied. It wasn't that Gruffi enjoyed seeing him struggle, but the time limit they were given didn't allow for them to take their time. Tikaani certainly wasn't waiting on them.

She eventually slowed when she reached one of the ledges of the cliff which had enough room for her to climb up on it. Out of the two men, Gruffi was the first to reach her and pulled himself up onto the ledge before turning to help Tummi up. There was a small grassy area filled with a variety of flowers and other plants. Tikaani didn't say a word to the two as she started to search.

"I take it we've found where they grow?" Gruffi asked.

"They can grow here," she said. "It depends on how lucky we are."

Gruffi nodded. "Come on, kid," he said to Tummi. "We gotta find that botrus."

They worked quietly as they combed the small grassy area for any sign of the lavender botrus. Gruffi couldn't think of anything but saving Sunni in that moment. Anxiety was building up as he thought about how she had to be lying in bed on the verge of death. He tried to banish the image from his mind to no avail.

"Hey," Tummi said. "Is this it?" Tummi held up a small plant for the other two to inspect. True to its name, the plant was a cluster of small lavender colored flowers while it's the bright green leaves on the stem were thin and long.

"That's it," Tikaani said. Her tone remained even while Gruffi's face lit up.

"Way to go, kid," he said. "Now we can get out of here."

"Not so fast."The voice chiming in was new. The three bears frantically looked around for the source before they turned their eyes upward. Standing above them on another ledge was a beast Gruffi and Tummi had never laid eyes on before. The creature was covered in dirty white fur from head to foot with leaves and mud twisted up in almost every strand. His large calloused hands rubbed together as he watched them.

He had one physical trait that Tummi and Gruffi couldn't look away from – his eyes. There was no iris or sclera; instead they were completely black. Even without pupils, Gruffi could feel the creature sizing him up. Its voice was deep and gravelly and each word sent a chill up the Glen gummis' spins.

"I don't enjoy having visitors on my mountain."

"Oh, that's okay," Tummi said. "We were just leaving. No reason to worry about us." He started to edge back a bit as the creature jumped down onto the ledge they stood on.

"We don't want trouble," Gruffi said. "We just needed this plant."

"So you're stealing a plant from _my_ mountain?" He asked. "You thought you could just rip up my mountain and run off with chunks of it?"

"Gruffi," Tikaani said. "Tummi, run."

"What?" Tummi asked.

"I said, run," she said. "I'll take care of this."

"Nothing doing," Gruffi said. "Gummis don't leave other gummis behind."

Tummi noticed a brief look of confusion on Tikaani's face. He wasn't able to focus on her for long as a enraged roar from the strange beast regained his attention. Staring into the creature's dark eyes, he clung to Gruffi's shirt and twisted the fabric around his fist.

"Quick," Gruffi shouted. "Your gummiberry juice!"

"I don't have any."

"You don't…?" Gruffi shook his head. What was this fool bear doing? How could she have come on such a dangerous journey without any gummiberry juice? He pulled away from Tummi to grab onto her. "Hold on tight."

He and Tummi quickly drank from the bottles of gummiberry juice they carried before the monster could charge. The two began to bounce down the mountainside quickly to escape the attack. Gruffi kept his arms around Tikaani as they made their way down. Tikaani's expression didn't change, but Gruffi could feel her arm gripping his shoulders tightly.

"He's following," Tikaani said. She glanced over to Tummi to see if he'd heard, but it was difficult to tell.

"Don't worry about him," Gruffi said. "We just need to get down this mountain before the juice wears off."

Gruffi could already feel the effects of the juice starting to subside. He could see ground was just a few feet away and something in him told him to risk one last huge jump. If he didn't, the juice might not last long enough for them to make it. "Hold on," he said. He felt her arm tighten around him as he made the leap. His stomach did flips as he watched the ground come closer to them.

The second after his feet hit the ground, he could feel the juice leaving his system. He gave a sigh of relief as he set Tikaani down and turned to look for Tummi. His heart stopped when he saw Tummi was no longer bouncing his way down.

"It must have worn off already for him," Gruffi said. He tried to find sight of the black-eyed monster but there was no sign of him. It didn't ease his fears as they waited for Tummi. When he was closer to the bottom, Gruffi hurried over to help him down from the mountainside. "Come on, we gotta get out of here."

"What was that thing?"

"My clan knows it as a krernertok iyaroak," Tikaani said. "I wasn't aware they existed this far from home."

"Yeah, well, let's save our surprise for later," Gruffi said. "We need to get back to the boat."

Tummi looked back to the mountain once more as the group moved forward. Gruffi silently thanked whatever deity may have existed for the lack of peril that awaited them on the road back to the boat. It was still docked at the shore and Gruffi made no arguments when Tummi took the helm again. All he could think about was getting home to Sunni now that they had the plant they'd been after.

Before they could set sail, Gruffi could see something moving in the trees. He tried to ignore it until the strange black-eyed beast from before emerged. Gruffi's fur stood on end as the monster made its way closer.

"Tummi!" He called out.

Tummi turned to look Gruffi's direction, catching sight of the creature. "Uh oh."

"We have to do something!"

Tummi snapped his fingers. "I have an idea," he said. "Gruffi, help me with this rope. Tikaani, can you distract him?"

"I can." She made her way off the boat without another word to keep the monster's attention. Tummi was relieved when Gruffi was following his orders without question. He had anticipated some sort of fight. Thanks to Tikaani, the beast didn't notice the other two gummis as they ran circles around him with the rope in their hands. He only realized what was happening when he felt the rope tightening around his legs. He fell forward with his chin hitting the beach beneath him; his teeth smashed together during the fall and the pain of it traveled straight to his gums. Gruffi and Tummi made sure to tie the rope knot tightly while leaving his hands free. The monster wouldn't be left defenseless on the beach while it would still slow him down when he had to take time to untie the knot.

"We gotta get out of here now," Gruffi said. The three managed to get back onto the boat with time to spare; iyaroaks weren't very good at dealing with knots. Before the iyaroak could get it untied, the gummis had already set sail and were on their way home. They could hear the beast screaming his demands for them to return until the island disappeared into the distance.

When they finally reached land again, Gruffi was the first one off the boat. He quickly tied it to the small dock the Great Gummis had built for it when they arrived. Once it was secure, he didn't wait for the other two as he ran back to Ursalia with the botrus in his hand. He didn't even stop to speak to the guards when he reached the city. He didn't even know or care how far back Tikaani and Tummi were.

"We're back!" Gruffi exclaimed breathlessly as he burst through the door. His clothing was torn and his fur covered in dirt and grime from everything they'd been through. He didn't care about any of it; the only thing that mattered was getting the flower to Sunni in time. His blood ran cold when he caught sight of Sunni. Her eyes were shut as she occasionally wheezed and coughed. Grammi sat by her side with a small cloth, wiping away any phlegm she coughed up.

"Gank toodness – thank goodness," Zummi got to his feet. "We were almost running out of hope."

"Valentina!" Gruffi didn't waste time on greetings. He thrust the flower into her hands which prompted her to head straight for the kitchen to mash it into the rest of the ingredients she'd gathered. Tikaani stayed just outside Sunni's door, but her eyes rested on Sunni. Every moment spent waiting on Valentina were agonizing. The Italian bear worked as quickly as she could and eventually she returned with a small cup with a violet colored liquid inside.

"We need to get her to drink this," Valentina said. She sat on the other side of Sunni as Grammi sat the girl up. Together, they gently encouraged the drowsy girl to drink the entire cupful. "Buono."

"Did it work?" Gruffi frowned.

"We'll know soon enough," Valentina said. "It'll be a few hours before we see the results. We may not even know until morning."

"I'll stay here with her," Gruffi said.

"Are you sure?" Zummi asked. "After such a rough journey-"

"I'm needed here," Gruffi shook his head. "With her."

Grammi nodded. "We're all needed."

There were no arguments as all of them gathered in Sunni's room to wait for some sign she'd recovered. Cubbi kept drifting in and out of sleep on Zummi's lap. He didn't normally cuddle up to the adults - he had grown out of that long ago - but he needed the reassurance that everything would be alright. He also figured Zummi could use the support as well. Tikaani kept her post outside the door.

"You don't have to stay," Gruffi said.

"I know."

Something told Gruffi not to push the subject. If she had her reasons for staying, it was unlikely she would share them. He placed his hand over Sunni's as he watched her sleep. Her breathing became less labored as the night went on, which he could only assume was a good sign. It was a struggle to keep his eyes open as he noticed the others were starting to succumb to sleep. The stress of everything that had happened was catching up to all of them and Gruffi's body was losing the war to stay awake. One moment he was watching Sunni and the next he could see sunlight pouring in from the window.

"Sunni?" He sat upright when he realized he'd slept through the night. He had been the first of the Glen gummis to wake up.

"She's still asleep," Tikaani said. "But she's not dead."

Despite the cold delivery, they were welcomed words. He gently nudged Sunni in hopes of getting a response. She didn't open her eyes or even shift in position; she was completely undisturbed by the motion. For Gruffi, this could only mean one thing.

Gruffi felt his heart sink and he made no effort to hold back his tears. Tikaani stood behind him with her face void of expression. She placed her hand on Gruffi's shoulder as she looked down to Sunni, but said nothing.

"Gruffi?"

"Tikaani, I don't…" Gruffi trailed off. That wasn't Tikaani's voice. It was far more high-pitched. There was a raspy sound to it and it was followed by a very soft cough. Gruffi raised his eyes to Sunni to see her staring back at him through half-lidded eyes.

"Gruffi, how long was I asleep?"

"Sunni!" There were still tears in his eyes as he hugged her tightly. Sunni weakly returned the hug, her body still recovering from her ordeal. "Can I get you anything, sweetie? Water?"

Sunni nodded. "Water, please?"

Gruffi didn't need to be asked twice. He hurried out of the room to both fetch her a glass and to alert the others. Tikaani was left alone with the cub as Sunni sized her up.

"Who are you?" Sunni asked.

"A friend."

"Of Gruffi's?"

Tikaani hesitated. "Yes."

"I don't remember seeing you before…."

"A lot has happened while you slept."

"Oh…"

"Sunni?" Grammi opened her eyes. "Sunni, darling!" She jolted upright and immediately hugged the younger gummi. "We were so worried about you!"

"How long was I asleep?"

"Four days," Buddi answered. Grammi's excited shout had startled him awake. "We were scared you might never wake up."

Grammi moved out of Buddi's way so the two cubs could hug. "I'm sorry I scared everyone," Sunni said.

"We're just happy you're safe," Buddi assured her. The two hugged awhile longer as Grammi woke the rest of the Glen family. As soon as the others were alert, Sunni was bombarded with hugs, well wishes and all the love she could stand. Tikaani took that as her cue to leave. Without a word, she headed downstairs. Gruffi pulled away from the group when he noticed her absence, reaching her just as she placed her hand on the doorknob.

"Leaving without so much as a goodbye?"

"My work here is done."

"Yeah, I guess it is." Gruffi struggled with his words. "I just wanted to thank you for what you did for us. Sunni wouldn't have made it without you."

Tikaani nodded. "I will see you another time."

"Um, yeah." Gruffi paused. "Wait a sec."

Gruffi disappeared into the kitchen for a moment before reemerging with a bottle of gummiberry juice in his hand. "Here," he said as he handed it to her. "You might need this sometime."

Tikaani glanced at the juice in her hand and nodded to him, but said nothing.

"So," Gruffi said. "Take care."

"Same to you." The goodbye wasn't an emotional one, but it felt fitting. As the door shut behind her, Gruffi had a feeling that wasn't the last he would see of her. They'd been through too much for it to simply end there, he thought. On that note, he decided to return to Sunni. She'd want to know all about everything that had happened while she was asleep.

Gruffi would never admit it aloud, but he was excited to share every moment of it with the others.

* * *

This chapter really made me feel like I need to get off my duff and find a beta reader.


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